Iraq veteran, conscientious objector returns from push for peace

Stieber will talk about six-month journey at Rockville Library

Laytonsville resident and Iraq war vet Josh Stieber, who became a conscientious objector in April, spent the last six months walking and biking across the U.S. talking with people about non-violence.

When Iraq veteran Josh Stieber became a conscientious objector in April, his journey had only just begun.

Stieber, 22, spent the last six months walking and biking across the country to talk about peace and nonviolent alternatives to war with people he met along the way. He donated the money he made in the military to nonprofits and other community organizations.

"It just kept getting better," Stieber said of his project, which he named the Contagious Love Experiment. "I got to see a whole different side of America besides what was on the news, people who were committed to helping each other."

He grew up in a church that extolled the honor and valor of war and joined the Army after high school, but soon realized he could not reconcile his faith and principles with what he saw on the ground.

Stieber set out on foot from his home in Laytonsville in late May and his trip took him all the way from Baltimore to Eureka, Calif. He talked about his experiences at events hosted by local peace groups, slept on strangers' couches and participated in candlelight vigils, and he returned home via bus, plane and hitched rides shortly before Thanksgiving.

Stieber was joined in August by fellow veteran Conor Curran, 25, of Toledo, Ohio, who served two deployments in Iraq with the U.S. Marine Corps. Curran joined the military to find direction and adventure but those feelings soon gave way to unease, anger and guilt. Upon returning home he resolved to find ways to make positive change in the world.

"I've noticed, not just for us but other people we saw, if you're taking a step forward and trying to lead by example, that opens people up to seeing that they can live the change they want," said Stieber, who was in the Army for three years. "I've learned to be a better listener and not to judge as quickly."

Stieber hopes to go to college and eventually work with youths, and he continues to write on his blog, contagiousloveexperiment.wordpress.com. Discussing war with people along the ideological spectrum helped him understand other perspectives, Stieber said, and he hopes others learned from him as well.

"If the answer is to get to the root of the problem, then the solution is to listen," he said. "You can argue about the past, but the important thing is to be open."

Stieber will be talking about his Contagious Love Experiment Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Rockville Library, 21 Maryland Ave.